Pin end plug for metal window shade roller



y 1965 J. A. ANDERSON ETAL 3,195,618

PIN END PLUG FOR METAL WINDOW SHADE ROLLER Filed Sept. 28, 1962 INVENTQRS JAMES A. ANDERSON PAUL J. ERPENBEQK ATTORNEYS To this end the method of forming the fl hfiiii Patented July 2% 1965 dice 3,195,618 PIN END PLUG FOR METAL WRNDGW HADE RDLLER James A. Anderson and Paul J. Erpenoech, Mushegon,

Mich assignors to Brenernan Hartshorn ind, Cincinnati, Shio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Sept. 23, 1962, Ser. No. 225,810 2 Claims. (til. 168-4523) This invention relates to metal rollers for window shades, and more particularly the invention is directed to a pin end plug adapted to be inserted a pro-selected distance into the hollow metal barrel forming the shade roller.

The problem to which the invention is addressed is that of adapting metal shade rollers to window openings of various sizes. The problem is particularly acute in the retail merchandising of window shades. In that situation it is, of course, impossible to stock window shades of as many sizes as there are different sized window openings. When a new shade is purchased, the shade and roller therefor are cut down from an oversized shade to approximately the size required to fit into the particular window. The stock is removed from the pin end of the roller, for the opposite end of the roller barrel contains the spring loaded windup mechanism and does not admit of cutting down.

More specifically, a metal shade roller comprises an elongated barrel having a pin end plug which is insertable into the hollow barrel. To reduce the over-all length of the shade the pin end plug is removed and, with the use of appropriate apparatus, for example of the type disclosed in co-pending application Serial No. 66,187, filed October 31, 1960, now Patent No. 3,121,359, the shade material and barrel are cut away to the extent required to bring the over-all shade length to the proper dimension when the pin end plug is re-inserted.

In practice, the shade barrel is frequently cut short and requires a slight extension in order to lit snugly between the window shade brackets by which the shade is mounted within a window frame. It has been an objective of the invention to provide for an adjustment of the over-all length of a window shade roller.

It has been another objective of the invention to provide a method of forming a pin end plug insertable into a roller barrel, the plug having a generally cylindrical portion which is manufactured from the roller barrel stock. plug end includes the steps of applying at least one longitudinally extending groove to the cylindrical stock by which its circumferential dimension is reduced to adapt it to be inserted in a roller barrel, and by which a radial resiliency is imparted to the plug end which permits the plug end to be resiliently compressed during insertion into the roller barrel. The resilience of the plug end assures a snug friction fit between the plug end and the internal surface of the roller barrel.

Another objective of the invention has been to provide for the longitudinal adjustability of the pin end plug with respect to the roller barrel through the formation of longitudinally spaced lance tabs in the surface of the plug. The tabs are formed by cutting a plurality of longitudinally spaced circumferentially directed slits in the plug and cutting a slot along one set of slit ends. The slot permits a tool to be inserted to engage a selected one of the thus formed tabs to raise it out of the surface of the plug into a position in which it will engage and thereby resist inward movement of the plug with respect to the roller barrel.

Preferably, the spacing between adjoining slits should be less than the longitudinal dimension of the pin to permit adjustment of the length of the shade roller by small increments which are fractions of the length of the pin.

There are several advantages residing in the pin end plug formed as described above in addition to the principal objective of the invention to provide adjustab-ility in the length of the window shade roller. For example, the adjustability is imparted to the combination by merely requiring two simple operations on a short length of roller barrel stock, namely the formation of the grooves and the slits. No special plug stock is required nor are any additional materials required to be added to the stock in order to provide the adjustability. Further, the resilient frictional engagement of the plug with the roller barrel permits the plug to be partially withdrawn from the barrel and blocked from re-insertion without causing the roller to lose any structural strength and without increasing the noise of the device through the vibration of the plug with respect to the barrel.

The several objectives and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a window shade mounted in a window frame,

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary elevational view of the pin end of a window shade employing our invention,

PEG. 3 is a perspective view of a pin end of the roller barrel,

P16. 4 is a disassembled view of the pin end plug and a fragment of a roller barrel,

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 5-5 of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a pin end plug showing the manner in which adjustment is effected.

Referring to FIG. 1 a window shade id is shown mounted within a window frame formed by side jambs ll. The window shade has a roller 12 suspended between brackets 13 and 14 of known design. In the illustrated form of the invention, the right-hand end of the window shade roller contains the spring wind-up mechanism and is terminated in a flat tang which is seated in an open slot in the window shade bracket 13. The opposits end of the roller is terminated in a pin 15 which is insertable in a hole 16 in the bracket lid.

As indicated above, the objective of the invention has been to facilitate the shortening of a window shade roller so as to adapt it for insertion between the brackets of any desired window frame size. To this end, the pin end of the shade roller includes a hollow roller barrel 1% which is closed by a pin end plug 1% to which the pin 15 is integrally attached. The hollow barrel 1% is a generally cylindrical sheet metal member which is formed into its cylindrical configuration by a lock seam 2b formed in a known manner.

The pin end plug 19 has a tubular portion 22 formed from the same stock as the roller barrel 13. Its lock seam may be knurled and engagcable with the knurled lock seam of barrel in to increase the frictional resistance to its withdrawal from barrel is. The outside diameter of the tubular portion 22 is reduced by forming tour 1011- gitudinal grooves 23, the V-shape of the grooves imparting a radial resiliency to the tubular portion 22. It should be understood that a greater or lesser number of grooves could be employed, their depth being altered so that the outside diameter of the tubular portion 22. remains the same. Preferably, that outside diameter should be slightly greater than the inside diameter of the barrel 1%.

The inward end of the plug 19 is tapered as at 24 to facilitate the insertion of the plug into the open end of the barrel. The opposite end of the tubular portion 3 22 is closed by a cap 25 which is fixedly mounted on the tubular portion 2-2 by cementing or welding. The pin and cap may be formed integrally as an impact extrusion or by any other suitable process.

The cap projects from the surface of the tubular portion 22 to form a shoulder 27, against which the end edge 28 of barrel 18 normally abuts. A plurality of longitudinally spaced slits 29 are formed in the hollowportion 22, the first of the slits being located immediately adjacent shoulder 27. A longitudinally extending slot 31 is cut in the tubular portion 22 immediately adjacent one end of the group of slits so as to form a plurality of longitudinally spaced tabs or circumferential se ments having free ends 32 adjacent the slot 31 and fixed ends 33 integral with the hollow portion 22. The tabs may have a width of inch, for example, as compared to the 4 inch longitudinal or axial dimensions of the pin 15. It should be understood that the dimensions given are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to impart a limitation on the invention. llt should be observed, however, that in the preferred form of the invention, the width of the'tabs 30 should be substantially less than the length of the pin 15 to permit adjustment of the over-all length of the roller by increments which are fractions of the length or" the pin.

As illustrated, in FIG. 6, any selected one of the tabs 30 is projectable radially outwardly from the surface of the hollow portion 22 .by inserting a tool shown in broken lines at 35 into the slot 31 and swinging it upwardly as viewed in FIG. 6 to force the tab out. When the tab is forced out, the degree of penetration of the plug 19 into the barrel 1? of the roller is limited by the engagement of the barrel edge 28 with the edge of the tab.

In the operation of the invention, a window shade roller may be shortened so that the over-all length is slightly less than that required for a precise fit between the brackets 13 and 14 of a specified window frame.

At the time the roller is shortened, the plug 19 is removed from the barrel 18 to permit the necessary length of the end of the barrel to be removed. Upon re-inser- I tion of the plug, the tapered end 24 permits the plug to be started in the barrel 18. An axial force applied between the plug and barrel causes the plug resiliently to compress in a radial direction,.thereby permitting its full insertion into the barrel.

If the roller is shortened to the extent that there is a danger of the window shade sliding out from between the brackets, or if the roller is so loose as to be unpleasantly noisy in operation, the overall length can be increased through the use of the present invention. To increase the length, the plug 19 can be slid outwardly with respect to the barrel 18 either while the roller is mounted between the brackets 13 and 14 or after removal from the brackets. When the plug has been slid outwardly to the desired length, a tool such as is illustrated at 35 in FIG- 6 is inserted into the'slot 31 and the exposed tab immediately adjacent the edge 28 of the barrel is projected outwardly to prevent inward telescoping of the plug 19 with respect to the barrel. The extent of the projection of a tab need be no greater than the thickness of the wall of barrel 18. The press fit of the plug with respect to the barrel is sufiicient to prevent flexing of the plug with respect to the barrel and to prevent rattling of the plug within the barrel. The force of the fit between the two members, however, is not so great as to prevent the reasonably convenient sliding of the two members with respect to each other when the adjustment is being effected.

We claim:

1. A pin end plug adapted to be inserted into and frictionally held in one end of a hollow roller barrel comprising,

a cylindrical sheet metal member,

a pin projecting from one end of said member,

a plurality of longitudinally spaced circumterentially directed slits in said sheet metal member forming outwardly bendable tabs, said slits being perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said roller barrel,

the longitudinal spacing between adjacent pairs of slits defining adjacent tabs being a fraction of the longitudinal projecting dimension of said pin,

whereby the length of the roller barrel and plug assembly may be adjusted in fractional increments of the longitudinal projecting dimension of said pin.

2. A pin end plug adapted to be inserted into and frictionally held in one end of a hollow roller barrel comprising,

a cylindrical sheet metal member,

a pin projecting from one end of said member,

a plurality of longitudinally spaced circumferentially directed slits in said sheet metal member and a longitudinal slot along the ends of said slits to form outwardly bendable tabs, said slits being perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said roller barrel,

the longitudinal spacing between adjacent pairs of defining adjacent tabs being a fraction of the longitudinal projecting dimension of said pin,

whereby the length of the roller barrel and plug assembly-may be adjusted in fractional increments of the longitudinal projecting dimension of said pin.

Ret-erences Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,175,345 3/16 Cunningham -263 1,882,592 10/32 Hendrickson 160-326 1,898,686 V 2/33 Rice 160-263 1,983,074 12/34 Durell 153-70 1,994,725 3/35 Oiiutt 153-70 2,307,095 1/43 Zaferakis 160-326 2,338,847 1/44 Hansen 29-1434 2,429,293 10/47 Peck et a1. 148.4 2,491,074 12/49 Bell 160-326 3,099,916 8/63 Rosenbaum 160-263 HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner. CHARLES E. OCONNELL, Examiner. 

1. A PIN END PLUG ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED INTO AND FRICTIONALLY HELD IN ONE END OF A HOLLOW ROLLER BARREL COMPRISING, A CYLINDRICAL SHEET METAL MEMBER, A PIN PROJECTING FROM ONE END OF SAID MEMBER, A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY SPACED CIRCUMFERENTIALLY DIRECTED SLITS IN SAID SHEET METAL MEMBEER FORMING OUTWARDLY BENDABLE TABS, SAID SLITS BEING PERPENDICULAR TO THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID ROLLER BARREL, THE LONGITUDINAL SPACING BETWEEN ADJACENT PAIRS OF SLITS DEFINING ADJACENT TABS BEING A FRICTION OF THE LONGITUDINAL PROJECTING DIMENSION OF SAID PIN, WHEREBY THE LENGTH OF THE ROLLER BARREL AND PLUG ASSEMBLY MAY BE ADJUSTING IN FRICTIONAL INCREMENTS OF THE LONGITUDINAL PROJECTING DIMENSION OF SAID IN. 